California FHA Loan Limits 2019: All 58 Counties

The table below shows the 2019 FHA loan limits for all counties in California. These limits apply to mortgage loans that are insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), which is part of HUD. This government backing makes them different from conventional or “regular” home loans.

2019 FHA Loan Limits for California Counties

Note: The California FHA loan limits shown below apply to single-family homes. You can find the caps for multifamily properties (such as duplexes) by visiting https://entp.hud.gov/idapp/html/hicost1.cfm.

California County

FHA Loan Limit

Alameda

$726,525

Alpine

$463,450

Amador

$350,750

Butte

$314,827

Calaveras

$373,750

Colusa

$314,827

Contra Costa

$726,525

Del Norte

$314,827

El Dorado

$552,000

Fresno

$314,827

Glenn

$314,827

Humboldt

$333,500

Imperial

$314,827

Inyo

$369,150

Kern

$314,827

Kings

$314,927

Lake

$314,927

Lassen

$314,927

Los Angeles

$726,525

Madera

$314,927

Marin

$726,525

Mariposa

$322,000

Mendocino

$409,400

Merced

$314,827

Modoc

$314,827

Mono

$529,000

Monterey

$652,050

Napa

$726,525

Nevada

$486,450

Orange

$726,525

Placer

$552,000

Plumas

$336,950

Riverside

$431,250

Sacramento

$552,000

San Benito

$726,525

San Bernardino

$431,250

San Diego

$690,000

San Francisco

$726,525

San Joaquin

$425,500

San Luis Obispo

$667,000

San Mateo

$726,525

Santa Barbara

$653,200

Santa Clara

$726,525

Santa Cruz

$726,525

Shasta

$314,827

Sierra

$314,827

Siskiyou

$314,827

Solano

$494,500

Sonoma

$704,950

Stanislaus

$350,750

Sutter

$324,300

Tehama

$314,827

Trinity

$314,827

Tulare

$314,827

Tuolumne

$331,200

Ventura

$713,000

Yolo

$552,000

Yuba

$324,300

Minimum Loan Requirements and Other Information

Do you have questions about FHA loan requirements in California? Keep reading. Here’s an overview of the minimum requirements and criteria for borrowers who are seeking an FHA-insured mortgage loan in California:

Down payment: Home buyers who want to use an FHA loan to buy a house anywhere in the state must put down at least 3.5% of the purchase price or appraised value (whichever is less).

Credit scores: Borrowers must have a credit score of at least 500 to participate in this program. A score of 580 or higher is necessary to be eligible for the 3.5% down payment mentioned above. Borrowers with scores between 500 and 579 must put down at least 10%. (Note: Those are the official HUD credit-score requirements for California FHA loans. Mortgage lenders can impose their own criteria as well.)

Debt ratios: HUD also has requirements and limits for the borrower’s debt-to-income ratio. But these criteria are a bit more relaxed, compared to the down payment and credit score requirements above. The maximum debt-to-income ratio for most California FHA loan borrowers is 43%. But it can be as high as 50% for some borrowers, if there are compensating factors to offset the higher debt level.

This is just a basic overview of California FHA loan requirements, limits and criteria. To learn more about this unique mortgage program, we recommend visiting FHAhandbook.com.